From the Principal

Dear Parents and Guardians,This week we started our new two-week-long Headstart program for students entering Years 11 & 12 in 2012. A great deal of hard work has gone into the preparation of this program, especially by Senior School Director, Mr Paul Carson, Deputy Principal – Learning & Teaching, Mr Darren Hovey, and Timetabler, Mr Gary Watson.The Headstart program gives Galen’s senior students the opportunity to make an early start on their VCE studies for the following year. Classes are held in every subject, homework is set as well as class work, and a study program in each subject is laid out for the summer holidays.We believe that this experience of commencing the year’s studies before the summer holidays will enhance the possibility of each Galen student achiev- ing to their potential in each subject. Many schools run similar programs and the feedback from these places has been overwhelmingly positive from students, teachers and parents: there is every reason to believe that the same will be the case at Galen.Year 12 GraduationThe Year 12 Graduation Ceremony was held last week, and what a fitting celebration to mark the end of thirteen years of school for these young adults! Each of the Year 12 graduands was presented to the audience and each received a commemorative scroll and a copy of the 2011 Galen magazine.Special guest speaker, Ms Phil Billington, Director of Catholic Education in Sandhurst, congratulated the students on reaching their graduation. She made particular reference to the role and experience of parents in educating and raising their children and praised parents for the great job they have done and continue to do in walking alongside and guiding their children.Finally, the students were exhorted to live well, love well as they make their way into the future as Old Collegians of Galen and to never take their God- given gift of life for granted.FarewellWe wish the following staff well as they make the next steps in their careers away from Galen:Mr Paul Maher who will be taking up the position of Principal at Sacred Heart Primary School in YarrawongaMr Pat Arcuri and Ms Claudia Bellani who will be relocating to ItalyMs Vicky Bennett, Ms Bree Schutt and Mr Michael Clark, our Junior School Officers, who have completed their GAP year with the college and will be moving onto further study Ms Bethne Hulme who has announced her retirementFinal newsletter arrangementsThe final newsletter for the year will be distributed after the release of the VCE results by VCAA. The final newsletter will be an abbreviated version but will contain information about how Galen Year 12 students have fared in their final results.Bernard Neal Principal